Trapper
Active Member
I read a lot of posts here that address equipment in BOB's. I never hear anything about a GHB = Get Home Bag. For most people they drive to work and then home everyday. Nothing is said about having a bag just to get yourself home. It would be an extremely rare event that you would not get home to assess what is going on, regroup with family, shore up what preps you have.
I'm not writing this to blast anyone. I am trying to bring on some thinking on everyone's part on what their actual plan will be. When you grab your BOB, where exactly are you going? At what point do you Bug Out? If you walk out of your house and plan on living in the woods will you make it more than a week? I can tell you from experience in living in the wild for up to a week at a time FULLY prepared it is very taxing physically. Bugging out will not be a camping trip out of a Winnebago RV. A bug out without a destination is = refugee. You will either end up dead or in a govt shelter. You wont have a lot of your gear as anything CONSIDERED to be a weapon will be taken from you for the benefit and safety of everyone. Don't get me wrong, if you plan on getting back to the family farm 100 miles away from the city where you live then I consider this a plan. If you haven't set up travel routes by foot or vehicle it maybe a poor plan but at least you have a destination. Most people I see think they are just head out with no talk about what or if they have an idea of where they are going.
I also see a lot of people talk about the equipment they put in BOB's such as machetes, NBC gear, hatchets, lock pick kits, handguns, long guns, ammo, knives, etc... I do a lot of canoe trekking. Portaging equipment from lake to lake as we travel. I use my gear and know it well. I also trap, hunt fish and process my own game animals. With the information I see it makes me wonder how many people actually take the time to use their gear after they pack it. People are asking what do you think of my BOB list? I sit back and look at the lists and it makes me think. I don't say much as it would be impossible for me to tell people with great certainty what they should take. Would you tell me what to pack for my next vacation? When I make suggestions I stick to generic ideas: Water, Food, Security, Shelter for the most part. Where are your BOB's kept when you at work? Is it at home? What gear are you carrying with you to ensure you can get home to begin with. You can have the best equipped BOB in the world but if you cant get to it when its needed, there is no value in having it.
Would most people be better served having a basic GHB rather than a BOB? Could your GHB be part of your BOB on the larger scale? Do most people need a BOB or are they setting themselves up for failure? Are they living in a fantasy thinking they will live off the land? Most people have never eaten an animal that they have not gotten from the local grocery store. What makes them think they will walk into the woods and magically become Daniel Boone?
Sorry for being long winded post but I want to provoke some constructive discussion we can all take something positive away from.
I'm not writing this to blast anyone. I am trying to bring on some thinking on everyone's part on what their actual plan will be. When you grab your BOB, where exactly are you going? At what point do you Bug Out? If you walk out of your house and plan on living in the woods will you make it more than a week? I can tell you from experience in living in the wild for up to a week at a time FULLY prepared it is very taxing physically. Bugging out will not be a camping trip out of a Winnebago RV. A bug out without a destination is = refugee. You will either end up dead or in a govt shelter. You wont have a lot of your gear as anything CONSIDERED to be a weapon will be taken from you for the benefit and safety of everyone. Don't get me wrong, if you plan on getting back to the family farm 100 miles away from the city where you live then I consider this a plan. If you haven't set up travel routes by foot or vehicle it maybe a poor plan but at least you have a destination. Most people I see think they are just head out with no talk about what or if they have an idea of where they are going.
I also see a lot of people talk about the equipment they put in BOB's such as machetes, NBC gear, hatchets, lock pick kits, handguns, long guns, ammo, knives, etc... I do a lot of canoe trekking. Portaging equipment from lake to lake as we travel. I use my gear and know it well. I also trap, hunt fish and process my own game animals. With the information I see it makes me wonder how many people actually take the time to use their gear after they pack it. People are asking what do you think of my BOB list? I sit back and look at the lists and it makes me think. I don't say much as it would be impossible for me to tell people with great certainty what they should take. Would you tell me what to pack for my next vacation? When I make suggestions I stick to generic ideas: Water, Food, Security, Shelter for the most part. Where are your BOB's kept when you at work? Is it at home? What gear are you carrying with you to ensure you can get home to begin with. You can have the best equipped BOB in the world but if you cant get to it when its needed, there is no value in having it.
Would most people be better served having a basic GHB rather than a BOB? Could your GHB be part of your BOB on the larger scale? Do most people need a BOB or are they setting themselves up for failure? Are they living in a fantasy thinking they will live off the land? Most people have never eaten an animal that they have not gotten from the local grocery store. What makes them think they will walk into the woods and magically become Daniel Boone?
Sorry for being long winded post but I want to provoke some constructive discussion we can all take something positive away from.